Ireland-based food writer Tom Doorley
ate his way through Dublin for Gael Force!
But after all the meals he had, he says lunch
at La Maison and dinner at The Winding
Stair outshined the rest. So how has the
local dining scene matured lately? “I would
like to think that Dublin restaurateurs
have learned that honesty sells and that
gimmicky food is very, very last year,” says
Doorley, who has homes in County Cork,
and Dublin. He is restaurant critic at The
Irish Times and a contributor to The Field,
BBC Olive Magazine and The Daily Mail.

After interviewing the summer lineup of
chart-topping kid rock musicians headed
to Jammin’ Java, writer Katie Knorovsky
couldn’t stop humming too-catchy tyke
tunes about “suitcases full of laughter” and
outfielders daydreaming about snowcones.
Meanwhile, catching a sneak peek of
the revamped roof terrace at the new W
Hotel—with its legendary view intact—left
her speechless. Knorovsky is a contributing
editor at HotelChatter.com and also writes
for Washingtonian, National Geographic
Traveler and Washington Post Express.

Playing a round of mini-golf in the name
of journalism wasn’t too tough a challenge
for Janelle Nanos, whose article, Heat
Wave, highlights five splashy new hot spots
opening this summer. Nanos is more travel
writer than golfer, though. “I struggled
with the The Mixing Bowl, but found out
from the course designer that it still needed
some tweaking. So I consider my putt-putt
reputation secure,” she says. Nanos has
written for The New York Times, New York,
Marie Claire and Slate, and is an editor at
National Geographic Traveler.

Jockeying for a place in front of the mirror as the oldest of
four girls would give any woman a certain amount of skin
care expertise. But as the daughter of a Swiss dermatologist
and internist, Ada Polla truly has a leg up on the rest of us.
Beauty was defined broadly in the Polla household, and her
parents, the founders of the anti-aging herbal crème and
treatment line Alchimie Forever, trafficked as much in fine
art as they did in fine lines.
The Forever Laser Institute, the company’s Geneva
medispa, is attached to a contemporary art gallery
featuring the work of artists who, in exchange for the gratis
treatments they’re given, pay homage to the beauty line
in original works of art. “Some people have a much more
developed sense of aesthetics than others,” the 31-year-old
says, having grown up with many of these artists joining
her family around the dinner table. “And I know that for
me, it’s probably developed to an extreme.”
This summer, Polla brings that aesthetic to Georgetown
with the opening of Alchimie Forever’s flagship showroom,
the company’s first storefront in the U.S. The family’s
DC envoy launched the line in the States after earning
a B.A. in art history from Harvard and collecting her
MBA at Georgetown. “My first thought was to work in a
contemporary art gallery,” says Polla. “Or to become head
of Sotheby’s, but then their CEO was indicted on charges
of setting prices with Christie’s and that kind of turned me

off.” Off auction houses, perhaps, but on to better things.
The beauty world’s gain is hardly the art world’s loss,
as the Wisconsin Avenue space will soon embody the
same gallery aesthetic as the Swiss medispa. It will be the
“visual interpretation of the product line,” Polla explains.
The company’s clinically designed serums and antioxidantenriched scrubs and cleansers will be on display, along with
a treatment area where these items will be demonstrated on
clients to highlight “the corporeal aspect of our products,”
she says. But the pièce de résistance is the art itself—mixedmedia works, a wall mural and other pieces culled from the
Swiss collection. Eventually, they will be replaced by the
artist-ambassadors she hopes to cultivate in DC.
These creative ambassadors are key to distinguishing
Alchimie, says Polla, who acknowledges that as an “indie
brand” they don’t have the budget to dangle endorsements
before Hollywood starlets. But it’s a savvy strategy, one that
equates their philosophy of product with art theory, and
relies less on lab-coat praise than on word-of-mouth.
“There are very few beauty brands that try to mix with
contemporary art,” says Polla. “For us, it’s very personal. If
we want to talk to the world of art, then we need to find art
ambassadors. We can’t use an aesthetician for that.”
Alchimie Forever, Waterfront Center, 1010 Wisconsin Ave.,
NW, Ste. 201, alchimieforever.com.

THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER
From top: The über-chic Alchimie
Forever president and CEO Ada Polla
brings the company’s art collection to
DC. “I would much rather spend money
on an art piece than a new pair of
shoes,” she says. Pieces such as Beast
in Me by Mat Collishaw and Le jour qui
n’arrive jamais by Andrea Mastrovito
will join her at the company’s new
Georgetown showroom.

Counter Culture

Blue Ridge

Heat
Wave

Summer nights sizzle with a slew of hip new stars
and bars | By Janelle Nanos | Photography by John Healey |
That buzz you’re hearing? It ain’t cicadas. A collection of
new nightlife hubs are waking up the District’s typically
sleepy summer. From farm-raised chops to beer and puttputt, here’s what to await and where to snag a table.

Public Bar
NEIGHBORHOOD: Tucked
among the clutch of
hip clubs in South
Dupont and designed
by Grupo7, Public
Bar reeks of chic in
the sporty style of a
top dog’s clubhouse.
NOOK: Like the old
diner jukeboxes, the
10-person booths that
line the lower floor
come with their own
televisions, ensuring
your game is always on.
Screens are even inside
the bathroom mirrors,
so you won’t miss a
minute. WHAT TO KNOW:
Bottle service will be
available without the
high overhead, while the
roof deck is the biggest
on the block. 1214 18th
St., NW, 202.233.2200.

H Street
Country Club
NEIGHBORHOOD: After
populating edgy H
Street with its hottest
spots, all that was left
for owner Joe Englert
was to create a clubhouse
of his very own. The
6,800- square-foot bar
with bites is replete with
a nine-hole mini-golf
course and an Ann
Cashion-designed menu.
NOOK: Grab the cocoonshaped president’s table
for a premier view
overlooking the little
links. WHAT TO KNOW:
Lee Wheeler, a local
sculptor who has “spent
the last 20 years making
things drunk-proof,” for
bars in DC, is behind

both the décor and the
DC-centric course itself.
While much has been
made of “Marion Barry’s
Awakening,” watch out
for the sixth hole on
the Beltway-inspired
“Mixing Bowl.” It’s a
doozy. 1335 H St., NE,
202.399.4722.

NEIGHBORHOOD: When

he swam away from
Georgetown’s Hook a
year ago, chef Barton
Seaver sought a more
“accessible” kitchen for
his sustainable menu
choices. Blue Ridge’s
bar scene is Glover
Park’s new gem and the
restaurant serves MidAtlantic fare sourced
by local purveyors
without gimmicks, says
owner Eli Hengst. The
menu (grilled trout,
grass-fed rib eye, applepear-cardamom pie)
would be recognizable
to Thomas Jefferson’s
entourage, and
celebrates “simple
American traditions.”
SURPRISE: The restaurant
merges two 110-year
old row homes, and
has an Amish-chic
vibe, with quilts,
glowing hanging
lights and a classy
long bar. Get some
air at the farm tables
around the backyard
patio’s pond. WHAT TO
KNOW: Hengst lives in
the area and wanted
to create a reliable
neighborhood place
“where you can have a
drink and a meal for
under $20.” To make
sure the locals feel at
home, only half the
tables will be available
for reservation. 2340
Wisconsin Ave., NW,
202.333.4004.

Columbia
Firehouse
NEIGHBORHOOD: Owner

Michael Babin believes
his newest venture
will fill the glaring
chophouse and cocktail
void in Old Town.
“There are more
steakhouses per capita
in DC than perhaps
anywhere else,” he says.
“But there are none

here.” The 19th-century
building’s handsome
upstairs dining room
will serve locallysourced cuts, while the
downstairs, with its
vaulted glass ceiling,
will offer “bar steaks,”
smaller plates and a
wine list cultivated by
Kris Mullins. NOOK: A
third-floor room with
its own bar is hidden
behind a wrought-iron
spiral staircase and is
a perfect small event
space. WHAT TO KNOW:
With 8,000 square
feet, Babin says the
Firehouse is the venue
he’s been longing
for. Expect the team
from Neighborhood
Restaurant Group
(Rustico, EatBar,
Tallula, Vermilion) to
come together for wine,
dinners and tastings.
109 S. Saint Asaph St.,
Old Town Alexandria.

Room 11
NEIGHBORHOOD: “The
beauty of 11th Street is
that it’s an alternative to
all the craziness on 14th
Street—the Target and
the Ruby Tuesday,” says
owner Nick Pimentel,
who hopes to draw
neighbors with a easy
to eat “one-utensil”
menu and choosy wine
list for the bar. “We’re
trying to turn it into a
little Main Street,” he
says. NOOK: Snag one of
the bar stools along the
bay window to peoplewatch. The drink rails
are big enough to hold
plates. WHAT TO KNOW:
Save room for dessert.
Pimentel’s wife, Lizzy
Evelyn (co-owner of
the Paisley Fig bakery),
will be serving up
cakes, tortes and other
treats—and they’ll be
available for takeout.
3234 11th St., NW,
202.332.2324.